By Peter M. Bracke

DreamWorks December title details

Another 12/19 announcement has come in from Dreamworks for the Woody Allen comedy Small Time Crooks. Allen's latest, like all of the director's work on DVD, is featureless aside from the trailer, is in mono and features a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. Retail is $24.95. Also, DreamWorks has issued the full specs on both the R-Rated and Unrated versions of Road Trip, which feature anamorphic widescreen transfers, DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 mixes, "Road Kill" deleted scenes, an "Outrageous" making-of featurette with Tom Green, an Eels music video, cast & crew bios, production notes, the trailer and DVD-ROM features. Retail is $26.95 for either disc.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...

Alright, go ahead and laugh, but ever since Jaws was announced for DVD a few months back, I've been waiting and hoping Universal would get around to also releasing a new edition of the first sequel, Jaws 2. While the abysmal Jaws The Revenge is already out on DVD via Goodtimes, and Jaws 3-D is nowhere to be seen, we are excited to report that Universal is indeed cooking up a DVD version of Jaws 2, as a special edition no less.

In a recent interview with director Jeannot Szwarc, he let us know that, "Laurent (Bouzereau), who is the same guy who did the DVD for SOMEWHERE IN TIME, is going to do the Jaws 2 (DVD) and he's already called me. I think we're getting together around the middle of December." Our guess would see the sequel released in 2001, probably in the same summer time frame as the original, but that's purely speculation at this point. One thing seems certain though, given Jaws 2's stormy production history and the involvement of one of DVD's best documentarians, this DVD seems to be getting more than just the standard Spotlight on Location treatment. Look for our full-length interview with the Somewhere In Time director soon.

Britney conquers Hawaii

Alright, Britney fans, here it is, an early Christmas present. Due on 11/21 from BMG is Britney Spears: Britney In Hawaii. This disc features clips fro her triumphant Hawaii concert heralding the arrival of her new album "Oops...I Did It Again," along with behind-the-scenes footage, Britney stills and more. Retail is $24.95, and the disc is in full frame and 5.1. Also due on 11/21 from BMG is something a little harder, Dokken: Live From The Sun. In full frame and 2.0, this is a live video complete with backstage footage and a band discography. Retail is also $24.95.

October 30 : New Top Pick contest (Frequency) and Clip Of The Week (MI2); Columbia readies 'Sleepwalkers'; 'Buffy' finally comes to DVD; news on 'Twin Peaks' DVD

This week's Top Pick contest

This week's TOP PICK is somewhat of a sleeper hit, New Line's box office surprise Frequency. It is a great transfer and sound mix with great features to match, and once again New Line has delivered a top quality presentation and pushed the format forward in terms of content. The "science facts" subtitle track is very fun, and the commentaries and documentary are also very nice. A great disc, so check it out and how to win in the box to your right.

And congrats goes out to last week's winner Bob Etherwell of Schaumburg, Illinois, who picked up a copy of Columbia's new The Patriot DVD, fresh from the hands of Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. Congrats!

Clip Of The Week - MI2

Our latest new clip is a sneak peek for all you MI2 fans, who I'm sure can't wait for the disc's big release next Tuesday. Check out our review which is up today, along with the promo spot in the box to your right that gives you a little glimpse behind the scenes. A nice little clip, and watch for the disc on 11/7.

Stephen King goes to the movies

While many don't remember it as such, Stephen King's Sleepwalkers boasted quite a first for the prolific author. While gazillons of his books and short stories have been made into movies (often badly), his cats-from-hell tale was his first screenplay written directly for the screen. Of course, to some, that didn't make it any better. Anyway, Columbia will finally be releasing the film on DVD on 1/16. Featuring 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and full transfers, English, French and Spanish 2.0 surround mixes and subtitles, the disc features no additional extras aside from talent files, production notes and bonus trailers. Retail is $24.95.

Buffy finally comes to DVD

Well, no sooner than we post details on the overseas release of Buffy The Vampire Slayer to DVD, than the announcement comes in for the Region 1 set. Due on 1/9, the set looks the same, with the entire first season of 12 episodes spread across three discs, along with commentaries and interviews with series creator Joss Wheldon and star David Boreanaz, a photo gallery, a music video and the pilot script via DVD-ROM. Retail is $59.95 for the set.

Update from the Black Lodge

I'm sure by now all of you Twin Peaks fans have been asking "just what happened to all the DVDs, anyway?" While expectations were for at least a Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me DVD to have surfaced by now, looks like we'll have to wait a bit longer until 2001.

The folks over at The Black Lodge (great David Lynch and Twin Peaks site for those in the know) had a meeting with Matt Lasorsa and Mike Mulvihill from New Line Home Video, and got a sneak peek at the upcoming DVD. Thanks to The Block Lodge and their web guru Brian Kursar, here is a partial reprint, and you can get the full scoop here.

"The bad news is that we will probably not see the Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me DVD this year. The good news is that the reason that we won't be seeing it this year is because New Line is still currently under negotiations with the rights holder to acquire the rights to include the Deleted Scenes that have been chosen by David Lynch to be featured on the disc. New Line wanted to let us know that their current position is that they do NOT want to release the Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me DVD without deleted scenes until every possible option has been explored. They are committed to making this upcoming DVD, THE definitive Fire Walk With Me DVD, and have been working very closely with David Lynch to ensure that the DVD will surpass all expectations of the fans.

Also, New Line would like to thank everyone for their interest and letters of support regarding their upcoming DVD, as well as a spec list (for the disc): A new enhanced Anamorphic transfer personally approved by David Lynch, a new 5.1 remix of the audio (which was remixed at Mr. Lynch's home studio), a new 30-minute documentary featuring some of the key players of the movie, (as well as cast members that were cut out of the movie) produced by Mark Rance and also approved by David Lynch, and plenty more."

Thanks to TBL for the info, and be sure to check out their site for all the latest and greatest in the world of Twin Peaks.

A few new & noteworthy updates

The lack of big major release news continues this week, with just a few notable new updates for today. The Fox site has put up the covers of the December and January DTS titles, many of them reissues of older, more bare-bones releases. Due on 12/26 are Courage Under Fire, Predator and The Siege, while January sees The Thin Red Line, The X-Files: Fight The Future and The Last Of The Mohicans. The full specs still haven't been released yet, though all will be anamorphic widescreen (obviously), and will contain at least the same number of features as the previous Dolby Digital versions (and some probably more). Fox did let us know, however, that the original versions will all be discontinued, so from here on out these will be the only versions available.

Also, Buena Vista has announced a 1/16 arrival date for the "Cocktail Meets Showgirls" spectacle Coyote Ugly. This was my favorite guilty pleasure this year, and only the bare disc specs have been released. Look for an anamorphic widescreen transfer, and a retail tag of $29.95. Finally, the upcoming Road Trip DVD due on 12/19 will be released in an unrated version, boasting footage too gross even for the theaters, as well as a separate R-rated edition. Can't wait!

October 24 and 25 : New Line unleashes 'The Cell' and lots more new day & date announcements; 'Princess Mononoke' update

Believe it or not, there is absolutely no new release news for today, October 25th. As usually happens as Christmas nears, most of the studios have announced their big holiday plans, but hopefully we get some good and exciting news in the coming days...

A weak December?

New December day & date announcements

A number of new announcements have just come in for some end-of-year day & date releases, so even if none of the December catalog titles from the various studios tickles your fancy, maybe some new releases will.

Fox will unleash the entire first season of Digimon on 12/5. Since anything that remotely sounds like Pokemon makes me break out in hives, I'm not sure exactly how many episodes are on this one (I just couldn't bear to look.) But retail is $24.95 for the full frame, 2.0 surround set. Debuting a week later on 12/12 from Columbia are the foreign imports Kikujiro and Shower, featuring widescreen transfers, their original foreign language tracks in 2.0 stereo, production notes and the trailer. Retail is $29.95 each.

New Line will bow the gory thriller The Cell on 12/19, with loads of extra features, including audio commentaries with Director Tarsem Singh and another with the Production Team; two featurettes "A Profile of The Director By His Production Team" and "Examination Of the Film's Special Effects, Production Design, Make-Up and Costumes," a "Brain Map and Empathy Test," and some DVD-ROM features including the complete script-to-screen, the original theatrical web site and two playable game demos. Also on 12/19, New Line will debut the Brenda Blethyn comedy Saving Grace, which will be a straightforward disc with widescreen and full frame versions of the film, a 2.0 surround mix and the trailer. Retail is $24.95 each. Finally, DreamWorks has announced a 12/19 street date for the campus comedy Road Trip starring Tom Green and an unfortunate little white mouse, and retailing for $26.95. Unfortunately, no specs are yet available, though expect the full details to be announced any day now...

Then on 12/26 Warner will bow the Wesley Snipes actioner The Art Of War, with a 2.35;1 widescreen transfer, English and French 5.1 mixes, an audio commentary with director Christian Duguay, the trailer and cast bios. Retail is $24.95. Lastly, on 1/2 from Columbia comes the barely-released Stephen Hopkins thriller Under Suspicion, starring Gene Hackman. The $24.95 disc features anamorphic widescreen and full frame versions, English 5.1 and 2.0 tracks, production notes, talent files and the trailer.

A note on Princess Mononoke

Just an update on yesterday's post on the upcoming Princess Mononoke from Buena Vista. Some have speculated on the lack of an English dub track, as well as the listed release date, 12/01. All we can do is print what is posted officially at the Buena Vista press site, and it has no listing of a English Dub track, and the date listed is 12/1. Personally, I think the 12/1 is really 12/19, but that is what it says. We've put in a call to Buena Vista to verify the audio and street date specs, and will post an update if any of the current info on the Buena Vista site turns out to be inaccurate or incomplete...

October 23 : new Top Pick contest; Princess Mononoke returns; Se7en announced; Buffy preview

This week's Top Pick contest

This week's TOP PICK was a tough one, with so many good titles coming out tomorrow. But we went with The Patriot (though it was a close race with American Beauty, and both would be money well spent), which boasts a very nice transfer and sound mix, a good commentary track, and some nice featurettes. There is a DVD signing with Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin coming up this week in LA, so we'll be there, and if the event takes place as planned, we'll be getting a copy signed to give away. Check out the box to the right for our full review of the disc as well as your chance to win. Good luck!

Finally, we have the last three winners of our Bond contest. Congrats go out to Shane Sullivan of Baltimore, Maryland; Marc Bender of Buffalo, NY and Travis O'Connell of Iowa City, IA. Each won a copy of MGM's full Wave 3 Bond Collection, and congrats again!

Princess Mononoke returns

I don't know if this is old news or not already, but after a considerable delay and much hullabaloo, Buena Vista has set a 12/19 release date for Princess Mononoke, which is perhaps the most eagerly awaited anime DVD this side of Akira. The disc features a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, the original Japanese language track and a French dub both in 5.1, English Captions and English Subtitles, a making-of featurette, and the domestic release trailer. This comes directly off the Buena Vista press site (nicely revamped, finally!), and there is no listing for any English dub track at all. Retail is $29.95.

Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Lust, Envy, Wrath and... what's the other one again?

Finally, after an eternal wait, New Line has announced the specs for the Se7en two-disc Platinum Series and even set up a way cool and content-laden web site to promote it. It certainly looks great...a new anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen transfer, DTS 6.1 Discreet and Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX mixes, and a ton of extra features. Three audio commentaries by: director David Fincher, actor Brad Pitt and actor Norgan Freeman (from the Criterion laserdisc?); professor of Film Studies/ author Richard Dyer, screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker, Editor Richard Francis-Bruce, New Line Cinema's President of Production Michael De Luca and Fincher; and sound designer Ren Klyce, composer Howard Shore, Richard Dyer and Fincher, as well as an "Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence" presented with 3 angles and 6 audio tracks, an animated storyboard gallery, deleted scenes and alternate takes, an alternate ending, three still galleries with production designs, still photographs and "The Notebook" (also based on the Criterion laserdisc?), and finally the usual trailers and DVD-ROM access features. Retail is $29.95 and street 12/19.

'Buffy' preview?

Though we usually don't post news on non-Region 1 releases, there are just some titles that we get so much email on, when they get announced internationally but not here, we sometimes feel they are worth mentioning anyway. I must say that next to Babylon 5, we get more email asking for news on a release of Buffy The Vampire Slayer episodes than any other TV show. Fox International has announced the arrival of the first Buffy DVDs, but alas they are not yet scheduled for Region 1. However, check out this ad slick for a look at what is (probably) to come when the Region 1 release hits the shelves next year (and might I say, waaay cool fold-out cross-shaped packaging!) Though nothing is for sure until it is officially announced, Fox reps have indicated publicly Buffy episodes should arrive on DVD in the U.S. someday, so this info should be a pretty accurate taste of things to come for those of you who are just 'dying' for the latest news... (And special thanks to Scott J. for this info and photo)